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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29301102">Two Birds, One Stone</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleMissPascal/pseuds/LittleMissPascal'>LittleMissPascal</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Death and an Angel [14]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Mandalorian (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst and Feels, Blood and Violence, Canon-Typical Violence, Escape, Evil Gideon, Explicit Language, F/M, Female Reader, Immortals, Soul Bond, no beta we die like men, no y/n</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 01:55:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>9,845</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29301102</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleMissPascal/pseuds/LittleMissPascal</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>With the baby cradled in the nook of one arm and your bow clenched tightly in the other hand, you imagine you don’t look like a very intimidating foe, but kriff if you won’t go down swinging.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Din Djarin/Reader, Din Djarin/You</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Death and an Angel [14]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2052570</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>46</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>118</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Cross-posted on Tumblr</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>You feel half-asleep and wide awake at the same time. The exhaustion pulling at your eyelids cannot compete against the fear buzzing through your nerves at the thought of Gideon or his minions barging into your cell again. So you sit with your back against the rock wall, coldness seeping through the thin fabric of your clothes and spreading goosebumps along your skin, with the baby babbling away in your lap.</p><p>He keeps pulling at strands of your hair, not to be mean but to interrupt your intense staring match with the laser gate. Each time you look down at those brown eyes of his, however, Mayfeld’s words echo in your mind.</p><p>“Just...how old are you exactly?” you ask, running a gentle finger over the tip of his ear.</p><p>He doesn’t offer a verbal response, simply blinking back at you. </p><p>“I guess that was kind of rude to ask,” you say, making a face that prompts a giggle out of him. The sound is bright and innocent, stealing the air from your lungs as if he’s punched you instead. You struggle to wrap your head around how easy it’s been to develop this bond with him, how quick these motherly instincts you never knew you possessed sprung into existence in response to his presence. It defies logic, but you can’t shake the recurring thought you’ve always been meant to care about him. That his path and yours were always meant to cross some way, somehow.</p><p>“Rumor has it you’ve got powers.” You purse your lips thoughtfully, giving him a once-over from his surprisingly clean feet to the sparse peach fuzz-like hairs on his head. He gurgles and his ears perk up when you wrap your fingers around one of his tiny hands. “I’ve never heard of anyone being able to move stuff with their mind. If it’s true, you’ve got a pretty unique gift, bud. You could help a lot of people.”</p><p>His head drops towards his chest, concealing the lower half of his face within the coat he perpetually wears. The coo he makes this time is quieter than his usual ones, despondent in a way that threatens to tear your heart in two. </p><p>You try to lift his spirits again, making funny faces and asking him questions, but nothing works. All he does is cuddle his piece of fabric closer and curl against your stomach, twisting his body into as small a ball as he can make it. Eventually you fall silent, gently resting your hand over his backside. </p><p>You’ve begun to savor these private moments of peace, especially when the alternative is dealing with Gideon’s turbulent mood changes. Sometimes you’ll hear him shout orders at the mercenaries, his voice echoing off the walls like thunder, and the air becomes electrified with negative energy, a high-pitched humming note ringing in your eardrums. Each time it happens you can’t help squirming. The feeling is as bone-chilling as it is smothering, like Gideon’s stolen all the oxygen in the room despite being nowhere near you. </p><p>The sound of distant arguing voices gradually coming closer has you sitting up straighter, ignoring the blossom of pain from a particularly sharp rock digging into your shoulder as you strain your ears to listen closer. In your lap, the child turns his head, also appearing to be listening, but he makes no move to flee.</p><p>“All I’m saying is that crazy twi’ is damn lucky coming back here with only a broken wrist,” Mayfeld says as he comes into view beyond the laser gate, speaking with the devaronian you saw earlier when you’d been taken to send the message to Din. He resembles the rest of his species: large, stocky body, red skin and a pair of horns growing out of his skull. The last person anyone would want to engage in a fight with. </p><p>The devaronian laughs, a deep and throaty sound not unlike the rumbling of an earthquake. “She might have survived Death, but she’ll still wind up dead. Gideon wasn’t impressed with her failed mission.”</p><p>You press your lips firmly together to prevent yourself from gasping aloud. There’s only one twi’lek the two can be talking about. Maker, Xi’an’s loyalty knows no boundary limit if she willingly agreed to confront Din. </p><p>“Kind of strange, isn’t it? Death just disappearing into thin air like she claimed,” Mayfeld replies, digging through his pockets. His forehead creases with frustration when he doesn’t find what he’s searching for. He chuckles dryly. “Speaking of disappearing, I must’ve left my remote somewhere in this maze. You got yours, Burg?”</p><p>Burg grumbles, but fishes out his remote and presses the button to remove the laser gate.</p><p>Without its red glow, you squint to make out their figures outlined in the faint light of the lantern Burg carries. The devaronian remains standing still, but Mayfeld enters your cell and squats down in front of you.</p><p>“Just a routine collar check,” he tells you casually, as if you’ve undergone this process a dozen times before, but that's not true in the slightest. It’s too dark to make out his facial features, but you notice the way his head dips in the direction of the baby. “Just yours though. The Moff handles the gremlin’s collar maintenance himself. Doesn’t like us making a mess in his office space. Isn’t that right, Burg?”</p><p>“Right.”</p><p>“Always right,” Mayfeld mutters under his breath.</p><p>You blink, unsure what to do as he leans closer, further blocking out the light. How can he possibly see what he’s supposed to be doing? The baby whines quietly, making you realize you’ve been subconsciously hugging him too tight against your body, and you ease your grip the slightest bit.</p><p>“What do you think, Cupid?” Mayfeld asks abruptly. Your ears detect the faintest shifting of movement from him. “You know Death best, being his soulmate and all. Is he the type to hold grudges and hunt people down who’ve ticked him off?”</p><p>Something cold nudges against the side of your hand. The unexpected touch has your hand flinching away instinctively, but the unknown item follows and presses against your skin firmer, almost insistently. You grab hold of it, a mental image forming as you run your fingers over it.</p><p>The object reminds you almost like a strange type of nail: long, thin and metallic, but instead of a pointed end it becomes rounder. A circle, you think. The same shape as the keyhole.</p><p><em> Holy shit</em>. Mayfeld has given you the key to your collar.</p><p>“He’s stubborn,” you answer at last, praying your voice doesn’t tremble and alert Burg something is amiss. “But he’s also willing to listen to the voice of reason.”</p><p>“Let me guess,” Mayfeld says. “You’re the voice of reason?”</p><p>A second item is pressed against your hand. You take it immediately this time.</p><p>“Of course.”</p><p>Mayfeld leans back and stands up. “Good thing she’s our prisoner then, yeah?” He gestures at you with a jerk of his thumb over his shoulder as he returns to his companion’s side outside the cell. </p><p>“Her collar’s secure?” Burg asks, glancing at you as he turns the laser gate back on.</p><p>“Yep,” Mayfeld affirms, popping the ‘p’ obnoxiously. You see his eyes shift briefly to look directly at you. He nods his head, a quick and tiny movement you would have missed if not staring directly at him. “My paranoia can rest now. There’s no way she’s getting out of here.”</p><p>You wait until they’re out of sight before looking down at the contents clutched in your hand. Now that you can properly see again, you’re able to confirm Mayfeld had given you the key. All this time you thought you’d failed at negotiating with him and he’d turned his back on you, but perhaps the mercenary isn’t as much of a heartless bastard as you assumed. He’s playing a dangerous game of balancing on a thin tightrope, trying to find a way through this mess and get out alive. You don’t know whether to consider him brave or suicidal.</p><p>The urge to remove the collar and escape right now is near overwhelming. Kriff you miss Din so much, you just want to teleport into his arms the second he tells you where to go. But the desire is subdued when the baby hums curiously, tapping at your wrist to convince you to let him have a closer look at the key for himself. </p><p>You don’t know the mechanics of the collars well enough to risk teleporting with the baby in case it ends up shocking him. The last thing you want to do is cause him any pain. And leaving him behind is entirely unacceptable, the guilt would eat you alive. The only option left is tracking down the key.</p><p>Mayfeld had said the Moff personally handled the kid’s collar, that the hired henchmen weren’t allowed in the Seraph’s office. A knot of dread twists in your stomach as you realize if you’re going to escape with the baby collar-free, you’ll have to steal the key yourself. <em> Kriff. </em></p><p>You nearly choke on your spit when you identify the second item Mayfeld gave you is a remote to the laser gate. It fits in the palm of your hand, rectangular-shaped with multiple colored buttons. He’s provided you with a way to sneak through the underground labyrinth to conduct your search without having to teleport. You’re definitely going to sing Mayfeld’s praises to Din the first chance you get.</p><p>“Alright, bud,” you say, nervous anticipation making your fingers tremble as you reach behind your head with the key. “Don’t judge me too badly if I start crying.”</p><p>The baby tilts his head, watching with wide eyes as you insert the key into the hole and twist it.</p><p>As soon as the collar is disconnected and tossed aside your powers envelop you like a warm embrace. You don’t realize just how much you’ve missed your abilities until you summon your bow and something deep inside of you is soothed by the familiar feeling of holding it in your grip. Your bow is an extension of yourself, a piece of your identity, and now it’s going to be an advantage over your enemies. </p><p>Turning your focus to your soulmate bond, you're dismayed by what you find. The separation has been the equivalent of poison being poured upon the sapling you picture within your mind, blackening its leaves and causing it to wilt. It looks dead, you think, swallowing against the uncomfortable lump forming in your throat, the first warning sign tears are soon going to make an appearance. The only chance the bond has of recovering is reuniting with Din and you’re not certain it even has the strength to help you contact him.</p><p>You call out Din’s name, praying against the odds he hears you. The invisible barrier the collar had constructed to block you from reaching your soulmate is gone, but the frailty of the bond has become a new obstacle you didn’t predict encountering. It feels like you’re standing on an island, surrounded by the endless ocean every direction you turn, and you struggle not to let your flame of hope be extinguished when it has finally ignited after so much time spent trapped in this pit of despair. </p><p>The weakest of tugs from the other end of the bond has your breath catching. Could it be…?</p><p>
  <em> Please, please, please. </em>
</p><p>A minute later there is another tug, stronger this time, like Din is trying to physically pull you across the galaxy to his side. A smile stretches across your face, even as your eyes start to sting. At any other moment in your life you’d surrender to him without hesitation, but you force yourself to remain anchored in place, thinking of the baby. </p><p>You gather together all the emotions you’ve kept bottled up inside—love, fear, hope, longing—and send them through the bond one at a time, imagining them as paper airplanes soaring across the distance. <em> I can’t leave this place. Not yet, </em> your notes tell him. <em> I miss you, Din. I want to see you so much it hurts. </em> </p><p>The effort is exhausting, as if your brain has just solved a hundred complex equations. Conversing with your soulmate shouldn’t be this difficult. Your loathing towards Gideon increases, knowing he’s the one responsible for making the bond so weak by forcing the collar upon you.</p><p>Just when you’re beginning to think you won’t cry after all, you see a paper airplane zooming towards you within your subconscious, a reply from Din. Grabbing it, your body and soul are overwhelmed by the intensity of Din’s devotion attached to the note, obliterating any insecurities past, present and future about his affection for you. You feel your face start to crumble before you even read the five words he’s written, teardrops falling onto the illusory paper.</p><p>
  <em> I’m on my way, angel. </em>
</p><p>The light touch of a hand against your cheek snaps you back into reality. You blink rapidly to clear your teary vision, the baby’s distressed face swimming into view. Exhaling a shaky breath, you rub a hand over his head, reassuring him.</p><p>“It’s okay, bud,” you croak, chest full to the brim of vibrant and bubbly emotions where there used to be hollowness. Using your sleeves to wipe away the rest of your tears, you repeat yourself, “It’s all going to be okay.”</p><p>You know Din would want you to stay safe until he arrives by keeping your head down and not drawing unnecessary attention to yourself. But you have no idea how far away he is or how long it will be until he finds you. Staying in your cell, even with your bow at your side, makes you a sitting duck. No, you have to get out of here.</p><p>However, you aren’t foolish enough to not spare a second to consider the harsh consequences of being caught sneaking around. It’s an absolute fact you’ll be punished. You’ll wind up being collared again, maybe even physically beaten or have your tongue cut off like Gideon specifically threatened. A major part of you is terrified at the possibility the Seraph will decide to move you to another location, keeping you out of Din’s reach and further destroying your soulmate bond.</p><p>The baby is the one who ultimately makes the choice for you both by pressing the button on the remote before you even realize he’s moved, causing the laser gate to power down.</p><p>You stiffen as darkness floods the room, waiting for an army of henchmen to come storming in or for an alarm to start blaring. </p><p>When nothing happens for the next several pounding heartbeats, you push yourself onto your feet. With the baby cradled in the nook of one arm and your bow clenched tightly in the other hand, you imagine you don’t look like a very intimidating foe, but kriff if you won’t go down swinging.</p><p>Miraculously managing not to stumble in the darkness, you step outside your cell and into the tunnel. From here your gaze shifts from the left to the right and back again, glimpsing the pale glow of distant lights in both directions. Kriff, which way do you go? Xi’an had led you down the left passage earlier and while you don’t remember seeing any kind of office area, you still hesitate to rule it out entirely.</p><p>Mayfeld had given you everything you needed to get out of your cell, even subtly told you a location to go to, but your lack of knowing the ins and outs of the tunnel system will be your downfall. How could he have not factored that critical detail into his plan? </p><p>Unless...you’re not giving him enough credit.</p><p>When he’d referenced Gideon not liking anyone in his personal space, he’d asked Burg if he was right saying it to which the devaronian had agreed. Mayfeld is a chatterbox, the type who loves to get the last word in whenever he can, so when he’d muttered ‘always right’ under his breath, you’d dismissed it as him being his usual smart-mouthed self. </p><p>You look down the right passage. There’s a chance you’re overthinking things. There’s a chance this entire endeavor has been one giant trap meant to lull you into a false sense of security. </p><p>But there’s also a chance you’re right and Mayfeld is on your side.</p><p>Sending a quiet prayer up to the Maker, you start walking. Each step is quiet and careful, but you maintain a quick pace. You can’t afford to be slow. </p><p>Compared to your earlier venture where you’d seen several of Gideon’s henchmen, so far your surroundings are eerily still and devoid of people. If not for the few hanging lanterns along the walls, you’d think no one has ever traveled to this part of the underground. Perhaps you’d underestimated the truth in Mayfeld’s words about Gideon not liking anyone going near his office. Still, you remain alert, listening intently for the sound of voices or footsteps. </p><p>In one of the tunnel’s corners you find more boxes and crates similar to the ones you’d seen in the large cavernous room, but these are filled with various essentials rather than weapons—food, tech, cloth, the kinds of things necessary for surviving and maintaining a secret prison. Where is Gideon getting the credits to buy all of this <em> and </em>pay his mercenaries satisfactorily? </p><p>Your own income stems from your matchmaking services. Clients pay you generously for finding their soulmate for them which allows you to live a comfortable life on Umbriel. You know other Cupids who have set up similar gigs on other planets, but you doubt Gideon’s wealth stems from helping mortals. </p><p>You continue walking along, sticking to the right each time the tunnel splits. Turning a corner, you’re as enthusiastic as you are wary about discovering the tunnel opens up into a larger, brightly lit cave with furniture which gives it the appearance of a proper room. This must be it, you think, creeping closer, only to pause when the baby, who up until this point has been blessedly silent, trembles in your arms and lets out a low whine.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” you whisper, failing to find anything threatening when you glance around. </p><p>Then you hear it: whimpering. </p><p>Realizing someone’s hurt, your desire to help seizes control over your survival instincts and you dart into the office. Your eyes sweep over the numerous bookshelves and the large desk covered in strange crystalline items of various colors until they land on a collared figure at the back of the room, hanging from their bound wrists attached to a chain in the ceiling. </p><p>For a moment, you and Xi’an simply stare at each other, both equally surprised to see each other. She looks horrific, covered in open wounds still oozing blood, including a particularly ghastly looking laceration across her face that nearly robbed her of an eye. You shift the baby in your arms to press him against your chest, not wanting the grotesque sight to scare him.</p><p>“What’s the matter?” She sneers at you as you continue to gape at her, unable to tear your own gaze away. “Do I have something on my face?”</p><p>You jerk out of your stupor. “Did Gideon do this to you?”</p><p>“He can’t take all of the credit.” Her eyes flick up towards her bound hands. You notice the twisted angle of one of her wrists, swollen and clearly broken. “Your boyfriend likes rough foreplay.”</p><p>You recall Mayfeld saying the twi’lek and Din had encountered one another and she’d returned with a broken wrist. Burg had then stated Gideon would be upset she’d failed her mission, but he hadn’t elaborated what he meant by that.</p><p>Setting the baby down on a nearby chair, you keep a tight hold on your bow as you draw closer to Xi’an. </p><p>“Why did you and Death fight?”</p><p>“He wasn’t a fan of how I redecorated your apartment.” </p><p>You clench your jaw, molars grinding against each other. “I know you were sent on a mission. What was the purpose of it?”</p><p>“If you really must know,” Xi’an pauses for dramatic effect, looking amused by your impatience. “I was sent to tell Death the same message you told him: to let go. He lost his temper. Got all hot and bothered, but before he could reap my soul he disappeared into thin air. Your boyfriend’s got a lot to learn about how to properly treat a lady.”</p><p>Treat a lady? Din spared her life whereas Gideon not only treated her like a sacrificial lamb, but also as his own personal punching bag. Doesn’t she understand she means nothing to the Seraph beyond what he can manipulate her into doing? </p><p>“I’ll be sure to tell him that,” you say at last. “He’s on his way here as we speak.”</p><p>Xi’an surprises you by laughing with audible delight. The sound so closely resembles a screech it causes you to wince. “That’s fantastic news! It’s going to be the fight of the millennium. Twice Death has denied Gideon’s request, but now he’ll have no other option except surrendering his soul.”</p><p>You struggle to piece together her meaning. “What are you talking about?”</p><p>The smile on her face reminds you of a clown’s, stretched abnormally wide with blood from her cuts acting as smeared lipstick. It deeply disturbs you to look at, but you need answers. </p><p>“He’s going to destroy Death’s self-control,” she says in a sing-song manner. “When they fight, he’ll break him open and absorb the darkness within.”</p><p>Your heart threatens to burst from your chest with how frantic it starts to beat. There’s a sudden sharp tug on the other end of your bond as Din reacts to your spike of anxiety, no doubt trying to understand what is wrong with you. “That’s impossible. He can’t do that.”</p><p>“You’ve seen his weapon, haven’t you? The Armorer made it,” Xi’an taunts. “The Lightsaber steals energy from souls and gives strength to the wielder. A transfer of power.”</p><p>“So, that’s his ultimate goal?” you question, panic sinking its claws deeper into your lungs. “Gideon wants to take Death’s powers? It won’t work. Death can’t be killed.”</p><p>“Well, <em> duh. </em> ” Xi’an rolls her eyes dramatically. “Gideon’s not going to kill Death. He’s going to <em> become </em>Death. Once upon a time he sampled a taste of your boyfriend’s dark energy when he stabbed him with the Lightsaber. For so long he’s been waiting for the perfect moment to drain Death entirely and it’s finally come.”</p><p>Bile rises in your throat as you breathe harshly through your nose. You can’t lose Din. He means too much to you, especially now that you’ve matched with him. You won’t survive a second in a galaxy where he doesn’t exist. </p><p>“You see those shiny devices?” Xi’an tips her head towards the desk behind you. Almost as if in a trance, you turn to look at the colorful cubes and pyramids. “Those holocrons contain every teeny tiny piece of information known about the first civilizations in the galaxy’s history, including their encounters with the Oracle. Gideon learned she had only one answer when mortals asked how vast is the power of Death.”</p><p>You can tell by the way she trails off that she’s waiting for you to ask what the answer is, but you remain silent, faintly aware of how your hands have begun trembling. </p><p>“When Death breaks open, his power will be unrivaled.” She smiles, a fiendish grin that aggravates her facial wounds and further dyes her purple skin scarlet. “Hope you told your precious boyfriend you love him, pet, because there will be nothing left of him after Gideon’s had his way with him.”</p><p>Your vision whites out as a tidal wave of panic overwhelms you. You gasp for air, pressing a hand against your throbbing chest. Din’s screaming in the back of your mind, each word distorted and incomprehensible, but there’s something strangely invigorating about the way his anger burns like acid through your veins. It surges through your bloodstream, transforming your terror into fierce determination. </p><p>So when your ears register Xi’an’s high-pitched laughter through the haze of unexpected adrenaline you don’t think, you just react.</p><p>With an undignified scream you lunge forward, slamming your bow across the twi’lek’s face. Blood spews out of her mouth as Xi’an cries out in pain, but you don’t hesitate, landing another firm blow and knocking her unconscious. </p><p>You take a second to steel yourself, expecting to feel sickened by your outburst of violence, but the sensation never comes. With Xi’an unconscious, you’re able to think clearly again. Xi’an’s monologue was too diabolical, too detailed, to be anything but sincere which means everything she said—the Lightsaber’s capabilities, the Oracle’s prophecy, <em> everything </em> —must be considered truthful. Her information casts new light on Gideon’s declaration to finish what he had started. He wounded Din in the past, now he has plans to wipe him out entirely. If he manages to steal Din’s powers <em> and </em>continues to wield the Lightsaber, he’ll be undefeatable.</p><p>Din’s side of the bond resembles a swarm of hornets when you reach out to him. No matter how loud you yell or how insistently you pull on the bond he remains oblivious to you. He’s let his emotions dominate his focus, blocking out all else, even his own soulmate. </p><p>If you can’t warn him through the bond to stay away, then your only option left is to physically stop Din’s path from crossing with Gideon’s by dragging your soulmate to the opposite end of the galaxy, as far away from here as possible.</p><p>“We’ve got to hurry, bud,” you say as you return to him. “Let’s find your key.”</p><p>Any worries you had about him being scared of what you’ve done are alleviated when he simply lifts his arms up for you to carry him. Slinging your bow over your shoulder, you pick him up and start scanning the office. As much as you wish Gideon had left the key out in the open, you know he’s too much of a control freak not to have a hiding place for it. </p><p>One whole wall of the cave is lined with bookshelves. There must be over a hundred books kept here, some so old-looking their pages have started yellowing. Judging by the titles alone, you determine Gideon is especially passionate about reading the biographies of all types of rulers: emperors, monarchs, even warlords. If these texts are all he fills his brain with, no wonder he’s become so obsessed with gaining power. </p><p>Every minute that passes without finding the key increases your frustrations. The baby starts fussing in your arms, reacting to your stress as you start pulling out books and tossing them onto the floor when they reveal no helpful clues. </p><p>The lights in the room abruptly switch to an inauspicious red coloring. It’s your only warning before an alarm blares, a long howling note that reverberates off every tunnel wall and is impossible to ignore. You wrap your arms around the baby to try to protect his sensitive ears, but you're helpless to prevent your own from being assaulted. </p><p>The alarm falls silent an excruciating minute later, and it occurs to you they must have realized you escaped. If you’re lucky, they’ll think you teleported to freedom and won’t immediately start searching every nook and cranny in the cave system. </p><p>“I knew I would find you here.”</p><p>But when in your life have you ever been lucky?</p><p>You slowly spin around, fighting to keep your face neutral as you lock eyes with Moff Gideon. He’s standing in the tunnel’s archway, blocking your only means of escaping. Unless you decide to take the risk and—</p><p>“If you teleport, there’s no guarantee the asset will survive the shock,” Gideon says, as if he read your mind. Your heart skips a nervous beat when he raises his hand, revealing the key you’ve been looking for held between his gloved fingers. “I assume this is the reason you’ve trashed my book collection.”</p><p>You set the child down at your feet and usher him towards the other side of the room, away from the intense gaze of the Seraph. “Give it to me,” you say as you rise to full height, simultaneously readying your bow and summoning your quiver of arrows. “Or I’ll put an arrow through your skull.”</p><p>“You’re many things, Cupid 1-1-7, but a killer is not one of them,” Gideon says, impervious to your threat. His face may as well have been carved from the same rock as the cave, cold and expressionless. “Your soulmate and his allies on the other hand are brutally tearing apart my army man by man right this very moment.”</p><p>An hour ago you would have been elated to hear Din is so close. Now the only emotion you feel is dread, numbing you from head to toe.</p><p>“You’ll lose if you fight him,” you warn, voice firm with conviction. “Even with the Lightsaber, there is no outcome where you are the victor. <em> You won’t break him</em>.”</p><p>“How fortunate for you my ally has loose lips.” Gideon’s dark eyes flick towards Xi’an’s limp body, then back to you. “It’s true, I do intend to break Death and <em> reap </em>the reward, so to speak. It’s only fair someone who’s worthy of such power be the one to possess it.”</p><p>Scoffing, you reply, “You’re planning to steal the power. How does being a thief make you worthy?”</p><p>Gideon’s expressionless mask cracks, his fierce temper revealing itself as his scowls at you. Clearly you’ve struck a nerve. </p><p>“I am the only one who can bring order to the galaxy,” he snaps. “The only one who will discipline the mortals as they rightly deserve. The universe never should have assigned me the pitiful role of a Seraph. With Death’s powers, I will remedy its mistake and fulfill my true purpose.”</p><p>He truly has lost his mind, you realize, feeling your stomach drop to the floor. His lust for power has warped his sense of logic and fractured his sanity. </p><p>“You’re right I won’t beat Death in combat,” Gideon continues, raising the volume of his voice in an ominous manner that sends a shiver down your spine. “Killing you will be a far easier task.”</p><p>You make the mistake of blinking as the Seraph teleports across the distance, appearing in front of you with his weapon lit. Instinct saves you, blocking his wild slash with your bow and wincing as the impact of the harsh blow rattles the bones in your arms. There is no time to grab one of your arrows as he continues his barrage of attacks, only the slightest of seconds to block and dodge.</p><p>There is nothing graceful about this fight. Gideon’s attacks are wild and unpredictable, fueled by his desire for bloodshed. You struggle to find a moment of vulnerability for you to counter, but finally your opening comes when he swipes his blade at an angle you’re able to safely duck under and deliver a well-aimed kick to the back of his knee. He grunts and while he doesn’t buckle like you’d hoped, the time it takes for him to recover is just enough for you to aim an ichor arrow at him.</p><p>“You’ve been trained well,” Gideon admits, but the compliment is hollow sounding. “Not that it matters. I ended your mortal life and I’ll end this one too.”</p><p>It takes several heartbeats for the words to sink in and you realize what they mean.</p><p>You were killed during the siege of a defenseless planet. Bombs had fallen from an enemy ship in the sky, leaving few, if any, survivors.</p><p>Your memories of the attack are filled with holes. Holes Gideon created.</p><p>Because he’s a control freak. Because he doesn’t want witnesses connecting the dots back to him.</p><p>Your aim remains steady from years of experience even as your voice trembles. However, this time you’re not on the verge of a panic attack. No, you’re kriffing pissed. </p><p>“There were <em> thousands </em>on that planet,” you hiss vehemently. “Including my best friend and my soulmate, you bastard.”</p><p>You release your arrow. It cuts through the air, heading directly for the center of his throat where his armor doesn’t reach. <em> Good riddance</em>, you think. <em> Enjoy damnation. </em></p><p>The narrowing of Gideon’s eyes is your only forewarning before the Lightsaber deflects the arrow. Instead of bursting into light as expected, you watch in silent horror as the kyber crystal shatters into pieces, sending sparkling fragments scattering across the floor.</p><p>“You’re not the first Cupid I’ve dealt with,” Gideon says, pleased to have caught you off guard. “I know every trick your pathetic little mind can imagine.”</p><p>Swallowing against the new tightness in your throat, you release a storm of arrows upon him, one after the other. The roles of the fight have switched with you on the offensive and him unable to do anything except keep deflecting every projectile. The broken arrow remnants litter the ground beneath your feet, crackling loudly each time he steps forward. You keep shuffling backwards, trying to maintain the distance, but you’re increasingly aware of the wall drawing closer and how your number of arrows is dwindling at an alarming rate.</p><p>One of the crystal shards punctures the sole of his boot, digging into the tender flesh of his foot and he lets out an enraged howl at the unanticipated wound. He tilts his head, glaring down at the floor, and you take advantage of his lapse in concentration, shooting another arrow.</p><p>Unable to properly deflect it towards the ground, the crystal explodes in his face upon impact with the Lightsaber. Each of the individual shards embed themselves in his cheeks and forehead, a few in his eyelids. Gideon falls to his knees, dropping the Lightsaber at his side as he screams and claws at his face. The ichor is burning his blood, exuding green mist from each of the gashes.</p><p>Your feeling of triumph is short-lived as you reach for another arrow and find nothing in your quiver for you to grab. Panting heavily, you look to your bow. You knocked Xi’an out with two hits to the head, there is not one doubt in your mind you can kill Gideon with a few more.</p><p>You feel as if you’re watching yourself from outside your own body, as if someone else is controlling your limbs as you slowly lift your bow over your head. You’re about to murder someone and break a sacred rule. </p><p><em> You’re doing this for Din</em>, the voice in the back of your mind reminds you. </p><p>But that’s not entirely the truth. You want to spare Din pain, but killing Gideon will also make sure the rest of your life is peaceful, as well as the baby’s. You’ll never have to look over your shoulder, terrified the Seraph has tracked you down. You both will truly be free.</p><p>The tension is so unbearable it demands to be broken. Your muscles tighten, readying to strike the bow against his skull, when another figure pops into existence out of the corner of your eye, sending your heart launching into your throat.</p><p>Whirling around, your bond lights up with fireworks as your eyes lock onto the visor of a helmet you’d recognize in a sea of thousands. Din stands tall, beskar armor gleaming dangerously, chest heaving as if he’s run a thousand miles to reach you. You nearly drop to the floor, boneless with relief of finally being able to see your soulmate again. Maker, you’ve never seen anyone more attractive and magnificent. Kriff, you missed him so damn much. You reach out to him, needing to hold his hand in yours, to feel his touch.</p><p>Din reaches back. “Angel, I—”</p><p>Your sharp gasp interrupts him as something hot pierces your side. </p><p>Everything seems to slow down all at once. You blink once, twice, then glance down to see the black blade of the Lightsaber buried into your flesh, just beneath your ribcage. A dark stain is spreading on your shirt outwards from the wound. </p><p>Blood, you realize, but the thought is lost in the fog swirling inside your head before the weight of its meaning can truly stick.</p><p>The edges of your vision blur and the force of gravity seems unusually strong, yanking you down onto the floor, legs unable to support your weight. Nothing hurts. You can’t decide if that’s good or not, unable to form a coherent thought except that the blood pouring out of your side looks like spilled paint. </p><p>Is it possible to make something beautiful out of a tragedy?</p><p>“Two birds, one stone,” you hear someone mutter hoarsely. “I always get what I want.”</p><p>In the space between the light of awareness and the dark of unconsciousness, you think you find your answer.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Mors Aeterna</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>And it’s unbelievable, truly, that he’s found someone who makes him feel as though he’s flying and falling simultaneously.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Cross-posted on Tumblr as Part 14.5</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ahsoka hijacks the Razor Crest as soon as Din teleports her aboard the ship. She pushes Din out of the cockpit, refusing to let him so much as glimpse the coordinates of the destination she inputs into the nav computer. The Oracle hadn’t been kidding when she said she didn’t trust him going alone to rescue his soulmate.</p><p>Bo-Katan hadn’t been phased by Ahsoka’s arrival, adapting to her presence with the same ease as a duck to water. However, Din couldn’t help noticing the moment her mask of cool indifference slipped when Ahsoka asked the reaper to stay in the cockpit with her, claiming they had important matters to discuss. </p><p></p><div class="">
  <p>Din climbs down the ladder into the hull, recognizing that the conversation about to ensue is not one he needs to be involved in. Fingers twitching restlessly, he commits himself to checking each of the weapons in his armory, sharpening his vibroblades and loading a set of whistling birds into his vambrace. He’d made a promise to Ahsoka against killing Moff Gideon, but he’d made no vow against scarring the Seraph beyond recognition.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>When Din’s finished with him, Gideon will be a warning to the rest of the galaxy what happens if you steal from Death. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He stills at the thrum of satisfaction that runs through his body at the thought of pressing Gideon’s eyeballs out with his thumbs. The darkness within him has grown stronger since he killed Hess and it’s becoming an increasingly harder challenge denying its craving for bloodshed. If not for Ahsoka’s intervention, he would have reaped Xi’an’s soul, breaking another sacred rule. He should feel grateful, but the darkness expresses annoyance instead, upset to have been denied its kill. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>There is a thought that has been plaguing the back of his mind, shackled in the same corner as his other doubts and regrets. He once had iron control over his powers and emotions, but now he’s holding onto his human façade by a mere thread. So slowly he hadn’t even been aware it was happening, his darkness has usurped his morality. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He’s meant to be a neutral entity, but when he looks at his reflection in the fresher mirror all he sees is a weapon. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Obsidian orbs have replaced brown eyes. Flawless tan skin has become dissected by lines of ink that once were blue veins. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Darkness is corrupting him from the inside out, making him a slave to the power he once mastered.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>And he doesn’t have a fucking clue how to stop it. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>~~</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Bo-Katan joins him in the hull an hour later. She doesn’t say anything , just leans against the wall across from him, and Din continues cleaning the barrel of his amban rifle as if he doesn’t see her. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>The silence isn’t tense or uncomfortable, but he feels her gaze trying to penetrate his helmet. He knows the reaper well-enough to tell there is a question on her mind, but her hesitance to voice it unsettles him. Bo-Katan rarely holds her tongue around him, preferring blunt honesty over sugarcoating, which means whatever is on her mind must be serious. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He bites back a sigh when she starts restlessly shifting in place and pauses his task. “Ahsoka told you,” he says at last.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“That Moff Gideon fucked with our lives?” Bo-Katan snorts humorlessly. “Yeah, she showed me everything.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I’m sorry about your sister.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Me too. But it’s...good not being in the dark anymore. I needed to hear the truth,” she replies stoically, but the pointless adjustment of her headband betrays her internal strife. There is a moment of pause before she looks at him again. “I heard about your promise,” she says, and it’s not really a question, except that it is.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din’s fingers tighten around the rifle. “Did she make you swear the same one?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“No.” Bo-Katan shakes her head. “No, she didn’t.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He’s not surprised by the answer. He actually thinks he should have expected it, considering the universe has always held him to a stricter standard than other entities. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Ahsoka made it clear to me that this is something between you, Gideon, and your angel alone. I cannot interfere just like you cannot kill him.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>There is bitter resignation in her tone. He recognizes it because he felt the same when he made his promise to Ahsoka. No one likes being told no when they want something. But this—knowing with absolute certainty Gideon is the one responsible for hurting their loved ones and being told you can’t do anything to avenge them? This is the kind of pain that will linger for years to come as an ache in their bones and a scar over their hearts.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>It isn’t fair. But Din’s lived long enough to know the universe never intended life to be that way.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Can I ask you a favor?” Bo-Katan asks, pulling him out of his thoughts.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He blinks at her, realizing this is the question she’d been withholding since she came down the ladder. Never has she asked him a request before. “What is it?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“You must separate Gideon from the Darksaber,” she answers, expression one of absolute seriousness. “The Armorer warned my people if the Lightsaber was ever mishandled, it would turn against the wielder by transforming into the Darksaber. Instead of empowering you, it deceives you. Fills your head with delusions until you lose your grip on reality entirely.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“And you want to spare Gideon’s sanity?” Din asks slowly.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Of course not. The son of a bitch deserves to be punished for his crimes. Even if I did want to,” her lips curl into a snarl at the thought, “there’s no way of undoing the damage done to his mind. What I want is for the weapon to be returned to the Armorer. She’s the only one who can properly dispose of it.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Right,” he agrees quietly. Anything that comes out of the Armorer’s forge is built to last the length of eternity. He could toss the Darksaber into the center of a sun and it’d remain whole and unaffected, waiting to twist the mind of the next wielder. Nodding his head, he assures her, “I’ll take care of it, even if I have to cut off his hands.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Good.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>~~</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din paces the length of the hull, each thud of his boots making contact with the metal floor blends with the low hum of the engines. Usually he’d ignore the creaks and groans of his home, but the metallic symphony is the only thing capable of drowning out the thoughts in his head urging him to storm the cockpit and retake control from Ahsoka.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Pacing isn’t going to make us arrive any quicker,” Bo-Katan tells him, not even bothering to open her eyes as she lounges atop one of his storage crates. “Ahsoka said it will be another hour at least.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He has a retort ready on his tongue when a voice calls out his name from somewhere beyond the Razor Crest.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“<em>Din!</em>”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din freezes in place as unexpected, heart-wrenching hope slices through his chest. He knows that voice. It’s his favorite in all the galaxy.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Death?” Bo-Katan asks, concerned by his stillness. “What’s wrong?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He tentatively reaches out towards the bond, giving it the slightest of tugs. When he feels the distant flicker of a reaction on the other end from his angel he nearly forgets how to breathe.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“The bond,” he murmurs, voice thick with awe and relief. “I can feel it again.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Longing fills his chest where the hollowness used to reside now that the invisible block separating them is gone. It wraps around his heart, squeezing so tightly he nearly falls to his knees. Din pulls at the bond again on impulse, possessed by the all-consuming need to see her, to have her at his side where she’ll be safe.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>The bond protests the harsh treatment, too weak to physically bring them together across the vast distance separating them. He snarls a curse under his breath, hating being helpless to protect her. It’s unfair, he finds himself thinking for a second time. Unfair how it hurts more now being able to feel her presence compared to when he couldn’t at all.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>A paper airplane flickers into existence on the horizon of his mind, flying straight into his hand when he reaches out for it. <em>I can’t leave this place. Not yet,</em> the note says. The words themselves are unsettling, but it’s the strength of the emotions she’s attached that has him reeling with shock. For one crazy, electrifying moment he thinks he’s passed onto the afterlife. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Another note arrives. <em>I miss you, Din. I want to see you so much it hurts.</em> And it’s unbelievable, truly, that he’s found someone who makes him feel as though he’s flying and falling simultaneously. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>As he sends a message of his own, never has he been more certain that if anyone can put an end to the darkness inside of him—it’s her.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>~~</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“The Moff is an expert when it comes to defensive warding,” Ahsoka says as the three of them stand looking up at a canyon wall that extends in either direction as far as their eyes can see. “But even he can’t hide from my sight.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din scuffs at the salt-covered ground with his boot, still coming to terms with the fact all this time Gideon’s been hiding out on Crait of all planets. As much as he wants to believe Ahsoka’s right, his powers can’t detect even the barest hint of the Seraph’s presence.  </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Bo-Katan’s eyebrows arch with skepticism. “You’re sure this is the right place? It’s kind of remote.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Perfect for building an army,” Ahsoka replies without missing a beat.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din exchanges a look with his reaper, realizing this is the first time either of them are hearing about this. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Gideon has an army?” he asks. “Who—”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Mercenaries,” she interrupts, turning around to face them. Her blue eyes are distant and cloudy, entranced by a vision. “When I break the warding, all but one will meet the end of their mortal lives attempting to overpower us.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“All but one? I don’t think so.” Bo-Katan rests her hands deliberately on her blaster pistols. “Anyone who works for Gideon is an enemy in my book.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Migs Mayfeld is not to be harmed.” There is steel in Ahsoka’s voice as she blinks back into the present moment.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din nudges Bo-Katan with his arm when it looks like she wants to continue arguing. The reaper huffs a quiet breath of annoyance, but eventually jerks her head in the tiniest nod of compliance. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Ahsoka grabs her twin sabers from her belt and ignites their blue blades. She handles her weapons with deadly grace, altering her appearance from peaceful Oracle to fierce and cunning warrior. Turning back to the canyon wall, her gaze trails over the red-brown rocks only to pause and narrow at seemingly random points.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Bo-Katan tries and fails to follow her line of vision. “What are you—”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>The Oracle leaps into the air with surprising agility, lashing out with her sabers against the rock. Blinding light bursts forth from the point of collision followed by a flickering glimpse of a gigantic metal door. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“—looking at,” Bo-Katan finishes quietly, watching Ahsoka swing herself higher to attack another portion of the canyon wall where the next segment of warding is hidden. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>There is something undeniably satisfying about seeing the door materialize as the wardings cloaking it are destroyed. Every precise strike of Ahsoka’s sabers brings Din one step closer to reuniting with his soulmate.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>As if spurred by the mere thought of her, fear ripples across the bond like a gust of icy wind, stopping his heart cold. His angel is terrified. Din reaches out as far as the bond will allow in its fragile state, trying to get her attention by pulling at it and shouting her name, but none of his attempts breach the storm of panic. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“She needs me,” he mutters to himself, stepping forward with clenched fists. His vision narrows until all he can see is the door in front of him, an obstacle that must be dealt with. “She needs my help.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Wait,” Bo-Katan calls out, but her voice sounds as if it’s coming from thousands of miles away. “Ahsoka isn’t finished with the warding yet!”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>If he were capable of rational thought in that moment, he would have heeded her warning. As it is, he summons his power into the palm of his hand, the darkness inside of him crowing in wicked delight. He winds his arm back, preparing to slam his fist against the door, only for a whipcord to wrap around his wrist with an audible <em>zip.</em> </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He’s pulled backwards onto the ground, breath knocked from his lungs as he lands with a heavy thud. Bo-Katan appears not a second later and pins him in place by straddling his waist. The darkness is demanding he push her aside, knowing with absolute certainty the reaper is no match against him, and it takes all his strength to wrestle the urge under control. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Are you out of your fucking mind?” She glares at him, eyes resembling green flames eager to incinerate him.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I—” he rasps, breathing heavily. His hand starts trembling, a burning itch under his skin. “I can feel her fear. She needs me.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Bo-Katan blows out a long, frustrated breath. “Well, shit.” She jostles him then, forcing his head to momentarily clear as his helmet smacks the ground. “Look, soulmates are soulmates for a reason, right? I heard it’s like being two halves of the same whole. So if your soulmate is anything like you, she’s not going to give up without a fight. You have to trust she can take care of herself right now. That she’ll be fine.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din bristles. Trust is not the issue here. There is no one he trusts more than his angel—not Bo-Katan, not Ahsoka, not even Kuiil. The issue is he’s being asked to deny the instinct to shield her from danger which is woven into every cell of his being.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“She’ll be fine.” The words come out sounding sharp around the edges, cutting his tongue like shrapnel. “Everything will be fine.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Bo-Katan disconnects the whipcord and rises to full height, apparently satisfied by his agreement. Din pushes himself onto his feet at a slower pace, his hand still shaking as if it's electric. He looks down at it, noticing for the first time the flesh is gone, replaced entirely by shadow. His expression tightens as he observes the change, realizing the black tendrils are slowly creeping up towards his wrist. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>An alarm rings out, reverberating off the canyon walls like an explosion. Din’s gaze snaps up just as Ahsoka lands on the ground in a defensive crouch. Now that it's been fully unveiled, the door bears a striking resemblance to ones he’s seen at military fortresses across the galaxy, ridiculously massive to intimidate enemies and impenetrable from outside attacks. It makes sense, he thinks with a scoff, someone as power-hungry as Gideon claiming an abandoned base as their lair. Without the wardings, Din is able to detect the massive number of souls gathering on the other side, resembling vermin crawling over one another in their haste to arm themselves. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He searches for his angel’s soul, even just a glimpse of her bright light, only for his powers to instead encounter a massive cloud of dark, negatively-charged energy within a distant corner of the underground tunnel system. It fills an entire room, prohibiting him from sensing if anyone is inside. There is something strangely familiar about the energy, like he’s encountered its essence before, but he can’t recall the specifics of when or where. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“It’s time.” </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Ahsoka’s voice reels his focus back to his physical surroundings. He notices the way her grip on her sabers tightens in anticipation and out of the corner of his eye Bo-Katan withdraws her blasters from their holsters.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>The bottom of the door begins to raise with an earsplitting groan, but the mercenaries only wait the minimum amount of time it takes to pass under without hitting their heads to start charging forward. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Every mortal has a beginning and an end just like everything else in the galaxy. These mercenaries are no exceptions, having long sealed their fates when they agreed to accept Gideon’s payment. So when Din’s shadowy hand phases through a man’s chest and tears his heart out of its cavity, staining the white salt under their feet crimson as blood bursts from the vacant hole, Din tells himself he’s simply fulfilling destiny. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He repeats it when he discharges an assault of whistling birds, each one puncturing the throats of each target they encounter with a shrill warcry. And also when he rips a devaronian’s horn out of his head, a fragment of skull and bits of brain matter still gruesomely attached. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Again and again, with each permanently silenced voice and every shattered fragile bone, destiny is fulfilled. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>~~</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din would be lying if he said he’s never wondered what it would be like to die. To pass on from this world into a new realm for him to explore. He’s imagined the idyllic afterlife mortals have written poems and novels about, describing it as a blissful safe haven where sorrow and tragedy have no definition because they do not exist. He’s familiar with their opinions of damnation’s appearance, too, as an infernal place of fire and brimstone and screaming.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>They were wrong about that.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Damnation is not a distant hell. It is found in an underground lair on Crait. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Instead of flames and sulfur, a Cupid’s blood is split and a soulmate bond is snapped in half. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Instead of screaming, a madman laughs.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I’ve waited so long for this moment,” Gideon says through his chuckles, hauling himself onto his feet. His voice is an abrasive rasp, as if he’s shredded his vocal cords by screaming. “I’ve had to be patient, wait to find your weakness so I could catch your attention. It’s a shame, really, she had to be the one you fell for. She was quite the little spitfire.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din stares at his soulmate’s motionless body, frozen in place. <em>Please,</em> he pulls at his severed half of the bond, resolutely ignoring how cold it feels. <em>Open your eyes, angel. Don’t leave me. Please.</em></p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>There is no response. Just heartbreaking silence.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I sense your anger, your hurt, and grief. Those are <em>mortal</em> emotions.” The Seraph grimaces in disgust, then lets out a low hiss when he agitates the wounds on his face. “By living amongst their kind you’ve forgotten your true potential. You are not their equal, Death. You are their superior. Immortals are meant to be better than them. To rule over every aspect of their pitiful lives.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I don’t want to rule anyone,” Din says, dragging his eyes away from his angel to glare at Gideon. Both his hands begin to shake as his mind plunges into a gaping abyss of remorse and despair. “I just want a life with her.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Even dead, she continues to blind you.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din snarls viciously in response. His control is pushed closer to the brink, holding on by mere fingertips, and darkness engulfs the entire room as a result. </p>
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  <p>The glow of the Darksaber persists, reflecting off his beskar and Gideon’s armor. It reminds him of moonlight, and he thinks for all that Bo-Katan warned him about the weapon’s sinful qualities, she did not mention its beauty. Even Ahsoka’s vision had failed to truly capture its radiance, just as a holovid can never compete with a face-to-face conversation. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>His powers are drawn to the Darksaber. The energy it emits matches the one encountered earlier when searching the tunnels for his angel’s aura. This close, there is no ignoring its familiarity, not when his brain feels seconds away from exploding. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I used to believe love conquers all,” Gideon prattles on, seemingly oblivious to Din’s torment. “I chose it as the Cupid motto because I thought there was nothing mortals cared more about than the health and happiness of their loved ones. Only after our fateful encounter did the Lightsaber reveal to me the truth.”</p>
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  <p>Lightsaber? Din’s head jerks up to stare at him, biting back a wince when the throbbing in the back of his mind intensifies at the movement. Does Gideon not realize the weapon has transformed? </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>By connecting Ahsoka’s claim that Gideon didn’t fully understand the consequence of corrupting the Lightsaber with Bo-Katan’s explanation that the Darksaber deceives its wielder, the answer is an obvious one: he doesn’t.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Gideon mistakes Din’s confusion for interest and his lips slowly curl into a smile. “Mors aeterna. It means—”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Death is eternal.” The translation slips unbiddenly from Din’s lips before he even realizes his mouth has opened.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“There is no one more feared or respected than you. But for what reason? What have you done to earn your reputation?” Gideon demands, spit flying as his anger flares. “You are no more than the universe’s favorite puppet. Mindlessly obedient to its every demand.” </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Hearing the truth always hurts, but hearing it from Gideon is especially torturous. Din’s creed to the universe has dictated his actions the entirety of his existence. He never fought against its orders, never thought of his own desires as more important than what it wanted.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Until he matched with his soulmate. She changed his priorities and shifted the center of his entire world by revealing to him even Death could experience love. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>There had been no hesitation when he broke his creed for her.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>And he doesn’t hesitate breaking Ahsoka’s promise now.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I just murdered your soulmate right in front of you and you do <em>nothing</em>. Did you ever love her at all?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I do.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Din summons every trace of power and darkness he possesses and combines them together within his core—a volatile, pulsating mass of pure chaos. His beskar armor starts to crack and chip away, unable to withstand the increasing pressure. </p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He thinks of his angel’s smiling face, the sound of her laughter, how bright her soul shines, and he thinks all those things are gone now. Not even a chance to say goodbye.</p>
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  <p>“More than anything.”</p>
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  <p>And Death lets go.</p>
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